Hamilton’s oldest law firm Harkness Henry takes on Auckland

Tuesday, 7 July 2026

Harkness Henry managing partner Sarah Rawcliffe said the merger marks a new chapter of growth for the firm.

After 150 years of serving the Waikato region, Hamilton’s oldest law firm is taking on the country’s biggest city.

Since first opening its doors in 1875, Harkness Henry has established legal offices in Hamilton, Paeroa, Cambridge, and Matamata. Now, a merger with Auckland-based law firm Malloy Goodwin Hardford ,will see the team expand its services outside of the Waikato region for the first time.

A merger with Auckland-based law firm Malloy Goodwin Hardford will see Harkness Henry expand its services outside of the Waikato region for the first time.

For Harkness Henry managing partner Sarah Rawcliffe, it marks a new chapter of growth for the firm.

“We see [it as] important to be continually looking at what opportunities there are to continue to develop and grow,” she said.

“I was up there on Wednesday as the new signs went up. It was very cool to see Harkness Henry up there in Newmarket, and spend some time with the team.”

Harkness Henry is Hamilton’s oldest law firm.

The combined firm will practice under the Harkness Henry name and will bring together over 60 staff and 10 partners across five offices: four in Waikato and one in Newmarket, Auckland.

According to Rawcliffe, the two firms were in discussions for “at least a year” prior to the merger, with the aim to create better outcomes for clients.

“For us it's really, really important to get the right combination of people and values.”

“We really value our people and our clients and so we didn't want to do anything that would take away from the fantastic culture we have at the moment,” she said.

The merger will also see clients benefit from an expanded suite of legal expertise, with the combined firms specialising across commercial, property, private client, litigation, employment, environmental, and intellectual property law.

“They've got very senior experienced lawyers, which we’ll be able to integrate with our team that we have here to just really strengthen the service that we can provide to our clients.”

Asked if Harkness Henry had plans to expand further around the North Island, Rawcliffe replied the firm was “going to have a pause”.

“We've got a really strong firm, good people, strong brand, and we don't want to dilute that in any way,” she said.

“For us, it will be now about consolidating [and] growing our relationship with our Auckland team, merging our client bases together, merging our people together, and focusing on that for the next bit.”